LoadStorm 2.0, a cloud-based web performance testing tool, now allows users to measure various transaction times so they can more easily ensure applications perform logical business processes with the speed users expect. Application developers and managers can now correlate test results to more real-world time-based user perspectives of performance. This new feature is in addition to LoadStorm’s comprehensive traditional stress and load testing and analysis capabilities.

Transaction timing is important for web performance engineers when acceptable service level agreements (SLA) have been defined. In these situations, it allows the definition and measurement of acceptable response times for business processes. Today, SLAs seemingly govern most application processes. Now, performance can more easily be related with time expectations users have for performing certain web transactions. These transactions (also known as business processes) could include a variety of actions. For example, within an enterprise it might be a login or search, a patient record update, and more. In ecommerce, it could be a shopping cart addition, a product comparison, credit card charge, and more.

“Using the new transaction response time feature adds a layer of simplicity in understanding performance issues in a way best perceived by real customers and users – in other words, how long does it take to complete this search, or complete that payment,” said Phillip Odom, director of performance engineering for LoadStorm. “Our customers can use this feature to better ensure service levels of each application business process are met. It adds a new dynamic to our analysis. It’s no longer just about measurements like CPU utilization, memory usage, and more. Now it’s also about a very common understanding – time.”

The transaction measurement feature is now available. It can be implemented for any type of transaction. LoadStorm 2.0 is available online as a full-featured Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution. It’s ideal for enterprise application managers, ecommerce managers, web developers, QA leaders, and others that must ensure web application performance. It’s offered with performance engineering consulting. The consulting services are designed to ensure LoadStorm 2.0 customers fully leverage the tool and avoid common mistakes. Virtual users (Vuser) are purchased on-demand for testing in different plans based on the amount of load needed. These Vusers are deployed based on set customer percentages for each type of transaction. This approach greatly increases the accuracy of the performance test results. Detailed graphs, for transaction response time and other measurements, are provided in real-time for analysis.